Horizon & Qudos Insolvency Update from the FSCS

On the 19th December 2018, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) declared the Gibraltar-based Horizon Insurance Company Ltd in default.

The news comes after the Supreme Court of Gibraltar appointed Freddie White of Grant Thornton as Administrator for the motor insurance company. Grant Thornton will deal with the management and settlement of any claims that arise from insurance policies that Horizon issued.

Jimmy Barber, Chief Operating Officer at FSCS, said:

“We estimate that 1,700 UK customers may be affected by the failure of Horizon. We are working closely with the Administrator to ensure all outstanding claims are paid in full.”

FSCS understands that Horizon has no live insurance policies and we are not expecting any claims for return of premium.

Customers of Horizon and third parties with outstanding claims should continue to deal with Catalyst Consulting Solutions, the existing claims handlers.

QUDOS INSURANCE PROBLEMS

Qudos Insurance A/S (Qudos), a Danish insurance company, was declared bankrupt on 20th December 2018. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) will be working closely with the liquidator, the Danish Guarantee Fund and the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (Danish FSA) to understand the impact of Qudos’ bankruptcy.

Qudos provided a range of insurance policies to the UK retail and commercial market. Policy types included, motor insurance, gap insurance, sickness and warranty insurance. Qudos also had about 50,000 policyholders in the Republic of Ireland, with around 1500 outstanding claims. It is understood these claims will ultimately be settled by the Danish government, although that may take some time.

Alex Kuczynski, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at FSCS, said:

“All Qudos policies will be terminated by the application of Danish Insolvency law three months after the date of bankruptcy is announced in the Danish Official Gazette. Policyholders can cancel policies themselves in accordance with the terms and condition of their policy.

For further information on how the Danish Guarantee Find is helping UK Customers of Qudos, please visit the Qudos website.

If a UK customer isn’t covered by the Danish Guarantee Fund, it is possible they can still benefit from FSCS protection for UK risks if they are a business with an annual turnover of less than £1m.”

For more information how FSCS insurance protection works, visit the insurance section of the FSCS website.